Nationals Name Dave Martinez As Next Manager

On Sunday, Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post reportedthe Nationals have finalized a three-year contract with an option with Dave Martinez to be the next skipper.

Martinez, 53, previously served as the Tampa Bay Rays bench coach from 2008-14, working alongside Joe Maddon. The two helped bring the Rays to an American League pennant in their first season together in ’08.

Over the last several years, Martinez has interviewed with a handful of teams for a managerial position, but has not been able to capture a job until now. This includes previously interviewing with the Nationals during the 2013 offseason before they ultimately chose Matt Williams to mind the store.

Since 2014, Martinez has been the bench coach of the Chicago Cubs alongside Maddon, where the two led the Cubs to their first World Series victory since 1908 in 2016.

Martinez will inherit a team that won 95 and 97 games, respectively, over the last two seasons under Dusty Baker who was relieved of his duties on Oct. 20. Both seasons, the Nationals were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.

According to Jon Heyman of Fan Rag, the deal will be officially announced after the World Series concludes.

Rob Piersall is a fourth-year student at SUNY New Paltz, studying journalism with a minor in communications. He is also the managing editor for his school's newspaper, The Oracle. A Mets fan since the age of six in 2001, Rob is senior editor here at MMO. His favorite thing is reporting breaking Mets news and transactions as well as writing columns. He is also ready to see what Mickey Callaway brings to the table in 2018. LGM! Follow Rob on Twitter: @RobPiersall.